Faculty Dimension Committee

Faculty

“Foundations Institutions make the first college year a high priority for the faculty.
These institutions are characterized by a culture of faculty responsibility for the
first year that is realized through high-quality instruction in first-year classes
and substantial interaction between faculty and first-year students both inside and
outside the classroom. This culture of responsibility is nurtured by chief academic
officers, deans, and department chairs and supported by the institutions’ reward systems.”

Executive Summary

The Austin Peay State University Faculty Dimension Committee has produced the following
executive summary as part of the university self-study process for the Foundations
of Excellence project.

Faculty generally perceive freshman success as a high priority at APSU and feel encouraged
by the senior administration, as well as within their departments/units, to engage
freshman students. The administration has been clear in its communication that improving
freshman retention is an economic necessity and while many faculty may not embrace
the economic model, they do acknowledge its reality. However, the faculty may perceive
the senior administration’s expectations as somewhat disconnected from the resources
allocated for the first-year student experience. The necessary resources to infuse
the current freshman experience with a robust faculty presence currently lag, as does
a robust culture promoting faculty involvement with freshman students. Furthermore,
some faculty do not perceive non-major freshmen students as a priority and the campus
is challenged with fostering such a culture. As the university community assesses
its efforts to increasing the success of freshman students, there are numerous opportunities
to advance a culture of freshman engagement where faculty place high value on the
freshman experiences. A primary challenge is cultivating and aligning faculty attitudes
with intentional behaviors. Fortunately, many of the changes can occur with few financial
impediments. Many of the cultural shortfalls can be traced to structural aspects of
the university’s practices. For example, the faculty hiring process could emphasize
the importance of working with freshman students, incentives and awards development
for faculty who focus on freshman student success, and pedagogical practices and research
rewarded in the retention, tenure, and promotion process.

Full report

The Austin Peay State University Faculty Dimension Committee has produced the following
report as part of the university self-study process for the Foundations of Excellence
project Here.